Pöttinger continues on course of growth

During financial year 2018/2019, the Austrian family-owned company Pöttinger once again achieved a considerable increase in turnover: with an increase of 8 percent, the machinery manufacturer attained a new turnover record of EUR 382 million. Pöttinger has generated steady growth over the past decade. The only exception was the year 2015/2016. The agricultural technology company has managed to more than double its sales in the last ten years.

The export amounts to 90 percent and impressively demonstrates the importance of Pöttinger in international markets.

In addition to their 1,892 dedicated employees worldwide and their innovative product range, international orientation and extensive investment in their production plants have contributed to this success.

"The best forage" and "The best soil" are the benefits that Pöttinger promises its customers. As the specialist for the best working results, Pöttinger always focuses on the needs of the customer with its equipment for grassland, tillage & seed drill technology. The comprehensive product range includes high output machines for small alpine farms as well as large-scale farming operations. As the world's No. 1 for loader wagons, Pöttinger is also one of the international leaders for mowers and mulch drilling technology.

Especially strong growth took place with stubble cultivators, balers and hay machines. The main reasons for this were the numerous innovative product details and customers placing their trust in proven quality.

Professional and timely supply of spare parts pays off: the spare parts logistics centre opened in 2018 has already shown what it can do. The growth in spare parts sales was equivalent to the growth in machine sales.

Pöttinger: increasingly dynamic worldwide

In many important markets, Pöttinger was once again able to increase its sales, despite the unsettled conditions and significantly weaker demand situation in some areas. The main drivers of growth were the many product innovations mentioned above as well as ongoing expansion of the international sales network. The export share of 90 percent clearly demonstrates the competitiveness of the Austrian agricultural machinery manufacturer.

More than 60 percent of total turnover is achieved in Germany, France, Austria, Poland, Czech Republic and Switzerland. Once again, Germany with a share of around 20 percent and France with 16 percent are the largest and most important single markets. It is pleasing that considerable growth was achieved in both markets over the past financial year. In the anniversary year "20 years of PÖTTINGER France", about 20 percent higher turnover was generated than in the previous year.

With an overall turnover of more than 10 percent, the domestic market of Austria remains one of the strongest country markets, alongside Germany and France. Compared to the previous year, turnover in the home market saw another considerable increase. That is because quality made in Austria continues to be in demand among local farmers. Pöttinger is particularly pleased about that. This growth proves that Pöttinger machines also fully meet the needs of small-scale farming.

Excellent growth in machine sales in Sweden, Czech Republic and Italy have exceeded expectations. The subsidiary PÖTTINGER Scandinavia, founded in 2016, also made an enormous contribution to the extremely successful development in Northern Europe (Sweden and Norway with + 37 percent each, Denmark + 15 percent and Finland + 85 percent).

32 nations, one success

As a family business with a tradition going back almost 150 years, Pöttinger feels a close bond with its employees. 32 nations worldwide use agricultural technology with the PÖTTINGER brand. The investments in modern and attractive jobs have paid off because once again, the agricultural machinery manufacturer has won an award for being a top employer in Austria. 2nd place in the machinery and plant construction industry is an excellent result.

The competence plant for soil preparation implements in Vodnany (CZ) was again named "Best Employer in South Bohemia".

Solidarity with the company became very evident in the past financial year. The construction of the new assembly line hall and logistics hall and the reengineering of the other manufacturing halls without interrupting ongoing production were very challenging for the team. Thanks to their dedication, however, they were still able to deliver the output required while making way for further growth.

Solid foundation for further profitable growth

With its 17 sales subsidiaries, the company is ideally equipped for international sales. Major investments have been completed in production sites such as the seed drill plant in Bernburg (DE) and the tillage competence centre in Vodnany (CZ). These have now been transformed into forward-looking, modern production facilities. The reengineering of the assembly line halls at the headquarters in Grieskirchen (AT) has almost been completed. This means that the company is optimised for efficient manufacturing and meets the latest standards (kitting, storage supply, etc.).

The growing sales figures, the ever larger machines and the new products planned have exhausted the space available at headquarters. That is why construction of a new plant in St. Georgen - approx. 5 km away - will begin in spring 2020. In the first expansion phase, which involves an investment volume of around EUR 25 million, round balers and large rakes will be manufactured starting spring 2021.

One column of the success model is a modern, efficient logistics concept. With the modern spare parts logistics centre the storage capacity has been increased and advanced technologies implemented to make logistics more efficient. Stocked with around 50,000 spare and wear parts, up to 800 customer orders are processed every day, and 3.5 million items are shipped worldwide every year.

Our vision

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"As an independent family business, we have set ourselves the goal of making farming businesses more successful, making their work easier and improving the quality of their products. We guarantee outstanding working results with the highest level of efficiency. We thrive on agricultural technology in all its aspects. Together with our dedicated employees and the reliable partnership with our customers, as well as with our innovative machines and services, we will be able to continue our solid course of growth in the coming years," says Gregor Dietachmayr, Spokesperson for the Management Team, explaining the company's approaches for the coming years.